136" track and 488cc liq, not so good in the deep..help?

[blackout94zr700]

What is the one thing that i could do to make my ol' sled do alot better in deep powder?

Is a longer track really the cheapest and most noticable??
or should I just deal with it until next season, when i buy my brothers '01 rmk800 144"??

i have also heard stuff like dropping the track mounting brackets, is that going to make much difference? (like it doesn't have enough ski pressure yet...)
..
..

 

[theultrarider]

When is the last time your clutches were rebuilt? That will probably get you the most bang for the buck. I had a 95 500 efi brand new. While it won't run with the new stuff, it got around pretty good. Maybe gear it down a little, but beyond that, just start saving for what you really want!

 

[BackCountryBob]

Back in the day we all ran 136" X 2" geared down with dropped axles. It's spring now, so run it like it is

Like ultrarider sez, save up for next year.

 

[cbc24]

drop&roll ur chaincase. she should be dec also regear

 

[mountainbigbull]

In your picture it looks like you have 1.0 or 1.5 track. Look for a 2 inch that would be the cheapest and most noticable thing you could do to that sled. Even in spring snow it will be noticable. Thats what I did to my 95 XLT and it made a differance.

 

[SylvanLaker]

Put a 174 in on it!!! No really rebuilding the drives is a great idea, just make sure it is in good working order. A lot of older sleds have very restrictive airboxes. Take it off and rejet it as required (usually much richer) and you'll get a bit more power!!

 

[yardfarmer]

I used to have an 01 500 liquid RMK 136 (gen II chassie), it had tons of ski presure and would not handle the deep snow well. You had to carry alot of ground speed for it to stay on top of the snow. My next sled was an 02 800 RMK 144 (edge chassie) huge improvement. I would save up some $$ to up grade.

 

[To The Pipe]

Sorry to say this, and I know there will be a lot of opposition, those Indy sled chasis were just junk. The handled poorly and dug straight down. The Gen II were a little better but not much, speaking from personal experience here. Ride yours for the rest of the season and get something with a-arms up front and a 144x2 in the back. My 93 AC EXT handled and rode better than either one of my Polaris sleds. To this day if my choice has to be between an Indy or my old Phazer, I will choose the Phazer hands down, every time. You could put hundreds of dollars into that Indy and only gain marginal handling improvements. Or you could save it for a more modern sled.

 

[blackout94zr700]

thanks for the input..

^^^ ......ok, i came off a 94 zr700 (last years sled) and i think my RMK has much better suspension and way better handling OFF TRAIL in the soft stuff. The AC had better handling ON GROOMED trails tho.

Big brother is gunna sell his 01 800 RMK 144" to me for $2500 next season when he gets a skidoo REV so, F it i'm just gunna learn on the old sled for this season..

..his RMK is gunna be great for all 130 pounds that I weigh...

 

[devilrmk]

For $2500, you can get into an 02 edge chassis that is much better than the gen2. Had one here the other day 02 800 144 for 2500 and another 02 800 156 for 2700.

Save your dough for a newer chassis. Been there and wasted lots of money.

 

[OuraySledder]

I agree on trying to move upmarket just hair more than the 2001 RMk. I have ridden those with 136 and 151 tracks, they are only marginally better than what you have, except for the big power boost obviously. Get yourself into a 2002 and up Edge, 700 or 800, at least a 144, 151 is better. You don't need something with A-arms. If you had $4500 to spend, then go to A-arms and find an M7, otherwise the Edge chassis ruled the mountains for years with trailing arms.

Seriously, don't just buy your brothers sled to help him out. Sell that one to somebody else and get yourself something you can really enjoy.

 

[blackout94zr700]

First off all the 800 is well worth the money. If I bought a EDGE for 2500 I would be a POS.... Second I doubt they would sell it to me on payments with no intrest.
So unless you will sell me yours for 2500 on payments with no intrest, I think I will buy my bros. Plus I know every mod and they all work well together, this thing is dialed and reliable. The 800 is far from stock, and NO COMPARISON to my '96.
have rode both, and the genII is a whole nother level from mine.

PLUS, if you read my previous post, i only weigh 130lbs, i dont need edge suspension!

its got slp twins, VF3's, motor mount kit, bars/risers, airbox/flowrites, Fox shocks, boss seat..etc.. find me an edge with all that for 2500....

 

[MARV1]

Drop down your suspension on the ol' 500RMK, it'll help it out a bit.

 

[OuraySledder]

First off all the 800 is well worth the money. If I bought a EDGE for 2500 I would be a POS.... Second I doubt they would sell it to me on payments with no intrest.
So unless you will sell me yours for 2500 on payments with no intrest, I think I will buy my bros. Plus I know every mod and they all work well together, this thing is dialed and reliable. The 800 is far from stock, and NO COMPARISON to my '96.
have rode both, and the genII is a whole nother level from mine.

PLUS, if you read my previous post, i only weigh 130lbs, i dont need edge suspension!

its got slp twins, VF3's, motor mount kit, bars/risers, airbox/flowrites, Fox shocks, boss seat..etc.. find me an edge with all that for 2500....

Sounds like you have it all figured out. Hope the crank doesn't break or you run it into a tree while still making payments Sounds like you are pretty young still. Someday you will figure out that buying an old used toy on payments isn't the smartest way to go, save those nickels

You are correct though, that is a lot of sled for the money. We were just trying to help, and the Edge is way better than the Gen2. If you look, especially this time of year, deals exist. My buddy just bought a pair of sno-check Edge sleds, an 800 144 with 300 miles and a 700 144 with just over 200 miles, he paid $5600 for the pair. Of course his bro wouldn't float the payments so he had to pay cash

 

[blackout94zr700]

i'm 19, so what? most 19yrolds dont have their own sled..

Drop down your suspension on the ol' 500RMK, it'll help it out a bit.

thank you, now thats why i posted to begin with.
any tips on dropping the mounts?


and the crank is gunna snap off??? uh, thats the point of the motor mount kit
cra**** into a tree while on payments? um what about these guys that buy brand new, think thier on payments?!?! and you can get iinsurance on any sled...
don't get me wrong tho, i thank you for the input. if i could i would get an edge, but i would want one thats in good shape. do you really think that edge for 2500 was in great shape and reliable?..not me

 

[devilrmk]

Boy are you young. Act just like a kid.

Just trying to make a point that you can get into a better sled for the dough, but not on payments.

If you ever rode an edge and then a gen2 in the same day you wouldn't want to get back on the gen2. I know, I have both. I won't ride the gen2 for more than 5 minutes.

 

[blackout94zr700]

Boy are you young. Act just like a kid.

Just trying to make a point that you can get into a better sled for the dough, but not on payments.

If you ever rode an edge and then a gen2 in the same day you wouldn't want to get back on the gen2. I know, I have both. I won't ride the gen2 for more than 5 minutes.

ok, so me being 19 makes me stupid or sumthing?
a better sled for the dough...... dont you understand that an edge for that price would be a beater.. where as bros is perfect...

who acts like a kid?.....

JEEEEEZ, kids these days..........

 

[jsledder]

Just a little advice... When you come onto a snowmobile forum (a WESTERN forum) and ask about either working on an old 96 or upgrading to a newer one, you will get several different opinions and that's really what you asked for. Now, opinions are like *******s and everyone has one but you seem to have it nailed down what you are going to do and when people respond to your thread giving you their opinion it isn't a good idea to knock them down if you want to continue to use this forum and be respected. You simply will not find another forum with the experience that CAN be found here, getting harder to find for sure with all the BS that's made it's way here but it's still here and if you come off like a young punk know it all (no offense) you wont get much response to your threads in the future. So, thank them for their advise, whether you like it or not, and move on to the next post.

Have fun on the 800, in a few years it sounds like you might move up to a Rev. There is a ton of experience here for both if you need it, just keep your head on straight.

As for the 96, ride it for the rest of the year (probably not much of it left) because there really isn't a "one thing" that can be done to make it noticeably better in the deep.

 

[aabbccddeeff]

put some new brackets

my wife has a 136 ... 2006 yam attack..we put on the new drop brackets and go 4 more inchs in the back... noticed that the snow cleaned out better.. ok its not my mountain but i noticed that this was the difference...unfortunately ... she still dosent....trail rider....my son is happy... try that its cheap and you will have to do it when you change the track anyway...

 

[devilrmk]

ok, so me being 19 makes me stupid or sumthing?
a better sled for the dough...... dont you understand that an edge for that price would be a beater.. where as bros is perfect...

who acts like a kid?.....

JEEEEEZ, kids these days..........

Being 19 doesn't make you stupid, the way you act is what is doing that.

Have seen plenty of nice edge sleds in the 2500-3000 range. Deals are out there if you look. Obviously you have made up your mind on buying your bro's sled and I am sure he will work with you more than joe blow will. It will be a great upgrade for you.

And if you think it won't break a crank cause you have a motor mount kit, you are very naive.